Madam, - Joseph Lake's response (April 7th) to John O'Shea's concerns about the disbursement of Irish government aid in Uganda somewhat misses the Goal director's point. At a time when we have at last come close to reaching our aid targets it is right and proper that NGOs such as Goal are not afraid to ask hard questions about where this aid goes, or how effective its application may be.
As taxpayers, we are entitled to expect that Irish aid funding is as effective as possible in combating poverty and injustice. It should not be used to give political advantage at home or on the international stage, and in particular is should not be funnelled through regimes that are known to be corrupt unless it is completely ring-fenced and directed to the people who need it.
It is also right to ask questions about how Ireland Aid has managed to monitor and control this increased aid spending at a time when that organisation is demoralised by the decision to relocate to Limerick, or at least to partly relocate: when I last checked, Ireland Aid was scattered over three locations, two in Dublin and one in Limerick. Are all these increased overheads funded from the aid budget? Is the audit element of Ireland Aid working - and if so, are organisations that have been found to misuse funds being asked to repay them? How much of its aid budget is made up of overheads, and have these grown disproportionately in recent months and years?
It is good that John O'Shea asks these questions; it would be better if the Government were to ask them. Brian Cowen was a very effective Minister for Foreign Affairs. Maybe he will now consider using his new position to order a root-and-branch review of the entire Ireland Aid operation following its partial and very sloppy decentralisation. - Yours, etc,
JOHN MULLIGAN, Chairman, Focus on Romania, Kirkfield Cottages, Dublin 15.